Grüezi metenand!
I'm already back home in Switzerland - it feels like I was only gone for some weeks... But after Russia and Mongolia it seems like a big green park where you can enjoy to go for a short refreshing walk in the well-kept green. It feels still smaller, narrower, neater and better organized than before; the realization of a small and wealthy nation... Yes, it's realy nice to have a home back here - but here I feel it more than ever: I cannot stay for long.
Anyway, I have to start working now - than we'll see further ;-) That means I have to make a traineeship or something like that for the next one or two years and than start working as a professional, ehm - I'm still not shure what kind of professional... But something with nature and outdoors, that's for shure! :-) The location doesn't matter, but as you know Switzerland is quite a good place to make money, so why not here..?
Ok, you see I'm not at all shure about what I'm going to do next. When I got anything, you will see it here.
In this sens - posmotrim!
Do skorovo!
Monday 23 August 2010
Thursday 22 July 2010
Sain baina!
Greetings from Mongolia, the land of the blue Sky! 10 days ago I arrived by train in Ulan Bator, the capital. It was just the time of the Naadaam festival, the biggest national holiday with traditional competitions in horse racing, wrestling and arrow shooting. I was most impressed by the colourful traditional costumes, which are not only worn on holidays and which are still common in the country side.
The city is home for almost half of the 2,3 million population of this huge country with one of the lowest population densities in the world: 1,5 persons per square kilometer. Mongolia is populated by 15 times more livestock than humans, although this winter some 4,5 millions of animals died because of a very severe winter, that’s around one 10th of the whole livestock.
Many herders have lost all of their animals. This led to still more immigration to the capital, most of them living in the sourrounding Ger districts in traditional felt yurts under very poor conditions or even in the underground kanalisation system of the city. Their only hope are donations from the Red Cross and some national help, which is fed from the countries most important income: copper and gold mining. Among copper and gold, the most important export goods are wool, cashmere and leather.
The poverty in the capital is also expressed by many pick pockets, which try to grab (or even just cut off) your camera or wallet in every crowded place. Thanks to courragous Mongolians I still have all my items ;-)
I was offered to join a week trip to the Gobi desert in the south of the country together with 4 young Koreans, which sounded so interesting, that I already on my second day left for the desert. This was my first contact with the desert and I liked it very much. But you must know that only some 3 % of the Gobi are covered with sand dunes, the rest is more or less hilly steppe and lowlands with some oases and pitoresque canions, some so deep that they are ice filled also during summer.
We had a lot of fun together, so I still joined the Koreans for a two days horse trip to the nearby Terelji National park with its rock formations, hills and larch forests.
At the moment I am waiting to go for a 6 days horse trip in central Mongolia around White Lake near Tsetserleg, which is known as the horse breeders paradise of Mongolia and continue from there by hiking the mountainous area with beautiful lakes and some old volcanoes until I take the plane back home to Switzerland on the 10th of August.
Yours,
“Edshea”, (my Mongolian name, meaning mother ;-)
Greetings from Mongolia, the land of the blue Sky! 10 days ago I arrived by train in Ulan Bator, the capital. It was just the time of the Naadaam festival, the biggest national holiday with traditional competitions in horse racing, wrestling and arrow shooting. I was most impressed by the colourful traditional costumes, which are not only worn on holidays and which are still common in the country side.
The city is home for almost half of the 2,3 million population of this huge country with one of the lowest population densities in the world: 1,5 persons per square kilometer. Mongolia is populated by 15 times more livestock than humans, although this winter some 4,5 millions of animals died because of a very severe winter, that’s around one 10th of the whole livestock.
Many herders have lost all of their animals. This led to still more immigration to the capital, most of them living in the sourrounding Ger districts in traditional felt yurts under very poor conditions or even in the underground kanalisation system of the city. Their only hope are donations from the Red Cross and some national help, which is fed from the countries most important income: copper and gold mining. Among copper and gold, the most important export goods are wool, cashmere and leather.
The poverty in the capital is also expressed by many pick pockets, which try to grab (or even just cut off) your camera or wallet in every crowded place. Thanks to courragous Mongolians I still have all my items ;-)
I was offered to join a week trip to the Gobi desert in the south of the country together with 4 young Koreans, which sounded so interesting, that I already on my second day left for the desert. This was my first contact with the desert and I liked it very much. But you must know that only some 3 % of the Gobi are covered with sand dunes, the rest is more or less hilly steppe and lowlands with some oases and pitoresque canions, some so deep that they are ice filled also during summer.
We had a lot of fun together, so I still joined the Koreans for a two days horse trip to the nearby Terelji National park with its rock formations, hills and larch forests.
At the moment I am waiting to go for a 6 days horse trip in central Mongolia around White Lake near Tsetserleg, which is known as the horse breeders paradise of Mongolia and continue from there by hiking the mountainous area with beautiful lakes and some old volcanoes until I take the plane back home to Switzerland on the 10th of August.
Yours,
“Edshea”, (my Mongolian name, meaning mother ;-)
Saturday 3 July 2010
Greetings from Lake Baikal, the (icy) pearl of Siberia!
By train I traveled during 3 days from Vladivostok in the Far East of Russia to Ulan Ude in the south of Lake Baikal, mostly along the Russian-Chinese border. In Ulan Ude, the capital of the Republic of Buriatia, I was first time in my life hit by temperatures around 40 degrees. Wind blew sand from the step through the streets. Kolja, a local Buriat boy I met on the train who just finished his first year at the Russian marine in Vladivostok, invited me to stay in his mothers place. The Buriats are relatives of the Mongols and also Buddhist. So I visited the next day the Buddhist Center of Russia in Ulan Ude whit its tempels and many souvenir stands.
Than I already left for Ust Barguzin at the east cost of Lake Baikal, where I still am. Here I got the address of Natasha, who owns a local tour agency. She explained me what to see and organized some nice trips for me. So I could join young tourist students from Ulan Ude for 4 days to the Holy Nose, a mountainous peninsula near Ust Barguzin with beautiful forest and hot springs. Than I did helped the local National Park to collect rubbish what for I could join them to the lonely Ushkanin islands, home to the biggest Nerpa (seal) population of Lake Baikal, 5-7 hours by ship from Ust Barguzin.
It is still quite calm here in means of tourism, the season only starts in the end of July, when water temperatures reach up to 20 degrees. Now the water has around 12 degrees. The Baikal is the deepest lake in the world (down to 1600 m) and keeps the worlds biggest fresh water amount. He is 600 km long (two times Switzerland!) and up to 70 km large. He is surrounded by taiga forest (pine, larch, birch) and untouched mountain ranges. Only in the southern part there are well developed touristic villages.
Next I am leaving for Barguzin and its beautiful valley with mountainous surrounding similar to the alps and many Buriat holy places.
It is still quite calm here in means of tourism, the season only starts in the end of July, when water temperatures reach up to 20 degrees. Now the water has around 12 degrees. The Baikal is the deepest lake in the world (down to 1600 m) and keeps the worlds biggest fresh water amount. He is 600 km long (two times Switzerland!) and up to 70 km large. He is surrounded by taiga forest (pine, larch, birch) and untouched mountain ranges. Only in the southern part there are well developed touristic villages.
Next post will be from Mongolia, what I want to explore for the next month.
By train I traveled during 3 days from Vladivostok in the Far East of Russia to Ulan Ude in the south of Lake Baikal, mostly along the Russian-Chinese border. In Ulan Ude, the capital of the Republic of Buriatia, I was first time in my life hit by temperatures around 40 degrees. Wind blew sand from the step through the streets. Kolja, a local Buriat boy I met on the train who just finished his first year at the Russian marine in Vladivostok, invited me to stay in his mothers place. The Buriats are relatives of the Mongols and also Buddhist. So I visited the next day the Buddhist Center of Russia in Ulan Ude whit its tempels and many souvenir stands.
Than I already left for Ust Barguzin at the east cost of Lake Baikal, where I still am. Here I got the address of Natasha, who owns a local tour agency. She explained me what to see and organized some nice trips for me. So I could join young tourist students from Ulan Ude for 4 days to the Holy Nose, a mountainous peninsula near Ust Barguzin with beautiful forest and hot springs. Than I did helped the local National Park to collect rubbish what for I could join them to the lonely Ushkanin islands, home to the biggest Nerpa (seal) population of Lake Baikal, 5-7 hours by ship from Ust Barguzin.
It is still quite calm here in means of tourism, the season only starts in the end of July, when water temperatures reach up to 20 degrees. Now the water has around 12 degrees. The Baikal is the deepest lake in the world (down to 1600 m) and keeps the worlds biggest fresh water amount. He is 600 km long (two times Switzerland!) and up to 70 km large. He is surrounded by taiga forest (pine, larch, birch) and untouched mountain ranges. Only in the southern part there are well developed touristic villages.
Next I am leaving for Barguzin and its beautiful valley with mountainous surrounding similar to the alps and many Buriat holy places.
It is still quite calm here in means of tourism, the season only starts in the end of July, when water temperatures reach up to 20 degrees. Now the water has around 12 degrees. The Baikal is the deepest lake in the world (down to 1600 m) and keeps the worlds biggest fresh water amount. He is 600 km long (two times Switzerland!) and up to 70 km large. He is surrounded by taiga forest (pine, larch, birch) and untouched mountain ranges. Only in the southern part there are well developed touristic villages.
Next post will be from Mongolia, what I want to explore for the next month.
Saturday 19 June 2010
Good by Kamchatka!
Now I am already in Vladivostok, 37 deg. C, horrible traffic and smog but beautiful girls and an interesting harbor and nice beaches nearby - and the nicest MC club you can imagine: THANK YOU IRON TIGERS of Vladivostok for your help!!!
During one week I have now tried to get a positive answer about how to register as a foreigner a motorcycle in Russia and drive it home to Switzerland during 4,5 month. I finally had to accept that its only possible by paying "fines" I cannot afford. So I bought a train ticket to Ulan Ude in central southern Siberia from where I will travel to lake Baikal for two weeks.
How I like the Transsib and the Baikal, the pearl of Siberia, I let you know in around 2 weeks.
KAMCHATKA - I am missing your clear air, fresh water and untouched nature!!! One for shure, I will come back to this beautiful place on earth.
During one week I have now tried to get a positive answer about how to register as a foreigner a motorcycle in Russia and drive it home to Switzerland during 4,5 month. I finally had to accept that its only possible by paying "fines" I cannot afford. So I bought a train ticket to Ulan Ude in central southern Siberia from where I will travel to lake Baikal for two weeks.
How I like the Transsib and the Baikal, the pearl of Siberia, I let you know in around 2 weeks.
KAMCHATKA - I am missing your clear air, fresh water and untouched nature!!! One for shure, I will come back to this beautiful place on earth.
Monday 24 May 2010
VIII
After six month of ice and snow, finally spring has found its way to Esso. Within 1 month almost all snow has gone, temperatures have risen from -20 to +15°C and days are long and sunny. My last month on Kamchatka has begun and my feet are itching. I have chosen not to finish the trip with the end of my voluntary service but to continue my travels and to go home the slowly way. A motorbike will carry me home from Vladivostok to Switzerland during the next 4 month. How the adventure continues, you can read and see on this blog.
But first still some news from Esso: The sunny spring in combination with the thermal water has lead to an explosion of vegetables in the green houses of the village. Fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, radish and herbs provide us with vitamins. On the other hand the melting snow changed the clean, well conditioned roads into muddy courses and the places in the north are again cut off the world for half a year, only available by helicopter and tank. Water is omnipresent and often means long detours, if your way crosses a river. Anyway, walking in rubber boots is great fun.
But first still some news from Esso: The sunny spring in combination with the thermal water has lead to an explosion of vegetables in the green houses of the village. Fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, radish and herbs provide us with vitamins. On the other hand the melting snow changed the clean, well conditioned roads into muddy courses and the places in the north are again cut off the world for half a year, only available by helicopter and tank. Water is omnipresent and often means long detours, if your way crosses a river. Anyway, walking in rubber boots is great fun.
Friday 19 March 2010
V
Spring sun sends its first rays to Esso!
Although it´s now colder than ever, the bright light is not only sign of a new season, for me it’s also the beginning of a new chapter in my life. There are only three month left as volunteer on Kamchatka – and than the big unknown is waiting for me! I will start to discover it in June from Vladivostok – by motorbike. My journey will first lead me home to Switzerland, through Russia, Mongolia and the southern parts of Eastern Europe. It’s planned to be back home next autumn. So far my plans I dare to tell you – further secrets I won’t tell you ;-)
And here still the latest news from Esso:
Last weekend was the start of the Beringia, a two weeks lasting sledge dog race from Esso to Ossora, 950 km in the north of Kamchatka. 15 teams were at the start and Esso was for some days full of people. For the first time of my life I had also the chance to go for a short ride with sledge dogs. 13 dogs pulled us with an incredible speed over the fields near Esso. Additional information you find on http://www.sleddogrevue.de/Article260.phtml in German or on the official home page http://www.beringia.ru/index.php?home&lang=en.
The weekend before was the day of the reindeer herders. That day reindeer herders participate in traditional competitions, such as reindeer sledge race, throwing the chow (lasso) and hatchet, wrestling in the snow and jumping over a line of sledges. There you could also watch local dance ensembles perform traditional Evene and Korjak dances and locals were selling hand made souvenirs and handicrafts, such as fur hats, boots and mittens, bead embroidery, wood carvings and handicrafts out of birch bark.
The days are now already long enough to do nice skiing trips to the near and further surrounding of Esso and the snow has gotten more assured so getting ahead is no more so hard. See the pics!
Next time I will tell you about my stay at the reindeer herders’ camp.
Although it´s now colder than ever, the bright light is not only sign of a new season, for me it’s also the beginning of a new chapter in my life. There are only three month left as volunteer on Kamchatka – and than the big unknown is waiting for me! I will start to discover it in June from Vladivostok – by motorbike. My journey will first lead me home to Switzerland, through Russia, Mongolia and the southern parts of Eastern Europe. It’s planned to be back home next autumn. So far my plans I dare to tell you – further secrets I won’t tell you ;-)
And here still the latest news from Esso:
Last weekend was the start of the Beringia, a two weeks lasting sledge dog race from Esso to Ossora, 950 km in the north of Kamchatka. 15 teams were at the start and Esso was for some days full of people. For the first time of my life I had also the chance to go for a short ride with sledge dogs. 13 dogs pulled us with an incredible speed over the fields near Esso. Additional information you find on http://www.sleddogrevue.de/Article260.phtml in German or on the official home page http://www.beringia.ru/index.php?home&lang=en.
The weekend before was the day of the reindeer herders. That day reindeer herders participate in traditional competitions, such as reindeer sledge race, throwing the chow (lasso) and hatchet, wrestling in the snow and jumping over a line of sledges. There you could also watch local dance ensembles perform traditional Evene and Korjak dances and locals were selling hand made souvenirs and handicrafts, such as fur hats, boots and mittens, bead embroidery, wood carvings and handicrafts out of birch bark.
The days are now already long enough to do nice skiing trips to the near and further surrounding of Esso and the snow has gotten more assured so getting ahead is no more so hard. See the pics!
Next time I will tell you about my stay at the reindeer herders’ camp.
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